The Unexpected Houseguest
by liz1967
Summary: Jack Ward, head Field agent for the CIA is back, but why is he staying with M and for how long?
1. Chapter 1

**For Davrin, thank you for being so patient. Hope you like this one.**

It had been an unusually quiet week for M. With 007 away on his first voluntary holiday in ages, M was finally able to catch up on some much neglected and rather tedious paperwork, interview a number of MI6 hopefuls, none of which had the slightest chance of ever becoming a crossing guard, let alone an agent, and still managed to make it home before the stroke of midnight for five whole days in a row. "This has to be some kind of record," she muttered to herself as she unlocked her front door and entered her flat, dumping her bag and coat in the hall, before continuing into her sitting room. She poured herself a drink and then headed on into the kitchen where she picked at the remains of her dinner from the previous night before going up for a nice long soak in the tub and then off to bed. It seemed odd to her to be going to bed before midnight. "How do ordinary people do this day in and day out?" she thought as she pulled the blankets up around her "This is about as exciting as watching paint dry". Not that she would ever admit it to another living soul, but M was beginning to miss 007 and his endless antics, not that she approved of them, but truth be told, some of them were rather entertaining.

It was just after 2:00 am when a loud thump woke her. As near as she could tell the sound came from the sitting room. Had this been an ordinary week, she would have assumed that it was James returning from a mission. Ever since her husband had died, James made it a point to come to her flat after a mission to be "debriefed" as he called it. M knew it was a lie. He came to check up on her, but she never let on that she knew his real reason for being there. M quietly opened the drawer to her bedside table and pulled out her service weapon, a taser. She refused to carry a gun because, as she put it, "I would have a better chance of hitting my target with a rock!" Therefore, at her insistence, she was issued a multi-pronged taser, which gave her a greater deployment range. Taser in hand, she crept down the stairs where she could hear glasses rattling in the kitchen. She slowly made her way to the doorway, stepping in slightly and was about to take aim, when suddenly, a hand reached out, disarming her within seconds. M backed away in a panic before the intruder switched on the light and she found herself face to face with 007.

"James! What are you doing here at this hour? For that matter, what are you doing here at all? "She snapped

"Sorry M, did I wake you?" he replied handing her back her taser "By the way, you really should have a proper gun!"

"Sorry? Is that all you have to say? You are supposed to be on holiday"

"I was, or rather I am...I need your help," he said as he stepped back into the kitchen and began making a pot of coffee

"I don't suppose this could have waited until morning?' she said as she followed him into the kitchen

"Well, no, not exactly" he replied as he reached above her and took down tree coffee cups

"What do you mean not exactly? And why do you have three cups?" she asked suspiciously

"Come with me" he said as he put the cups down and ushered her down the hall to the sitting room

When she entered the darkened room, M could just make out the figure of a person lying on her sofa.

"James! This is my flat, not a bed and breakfast! Who the hell is that and why are they sleeping on my sofa?" she snapped

M gasped slightly when James switched on the light. It only took her a second to realize that the figure on the sofa was one rather unconscious Jack Ward, Head field agent for the American CIA.

"Jack?" she half whispered, half yelled as she immediately crossed the room and knelt beside him and began checking for a pulse "What the HELL did you do to him?" she demanded angrily

"I...What did I do to him? I rescued him," replied James in an equally angry tone

"Rescued him? It looks more like you took him out, got him pissed and then brought him here so that I can take care of him!"

"He isn't drunk," snapped James "He's been drugged. If you get close enough, you can still smell a hint of licorice on his breath"

"Thanks, I'll take your word for it" she replied as she turned her attention back to Jack "Who would do this to him and why?" she asked with an obvious note of concern in her voice

"I have no idea, but I intend to find out"

"Why did you bring him here of all places?"

"What did you want me to do with him? I can't very well take him to the hospital now can I? I mean what would I say? "Excuse me doctor but I think my friend here has been drugged, and oh by the way he's the head field agent for the American CIA!" How the hell would we explain that to the Americans?"

"I see your point, but why here?"

"Look, Jack called me and asked me to meet him. He said he was working on something WE might find very interesting. It stands to reason that whoever did this knows that he called me, so my flat would be the first place whoever it is would look for us..."

"Alright, alright, but why not take him to our own medical facility?"

"Do YOU really want to explain that to Mr. Mallory? The same Mr. Mallory who has been watching you like a hawk since Jack's last visit?" he replied with a bit of a crooked grin

M began to blush slightly as she leaned over and adjusted the pillow beneath Jack's head, and covered him with the blanket on the back of the sofa.

"I just don't understand how Jack could be so careless as to let himself be drugged, I mean what agent with an ounce of intelligence LETS themselves be drugged?"

James shot her a rather awkward glance as he began smiling and shaking his head.

"I guess you have forgotten about Sidney, 1982..."

"Of course I haven't forgotten, but that was entirely different, I was on a mission, and..."

"And you let yourself be drugged, end of story!"

"Fine!" she snapped, "So what do we do now Einstein?"

"We wait till the drugs wear off then find out what happened" he said rather nonchalantly

"That's easy for you to say, he isn't out cold on your sofa"

"I could take him upstairs if you prefer," replied James with a wink

"No I think it's best we leave him where he is. No need to totally confuse him by having him wake up in a strange bedroom..."

"Are you saying your bedroom is strange?" he asked with a grin

"I MEANT the spare room, honestly James sometimes..."

"Alright. Well then see you in the morning," he said as he started toward the door

"And just where do you think you're going?" she asked in her usual no-nonsense tone

"I'm going out to see if I can find out who did this before the trail runs dry," he said as he leaned over and kissed her on the cheek

"And just what am I supposed to do with him in the meantime?" she asked motioning to Jack

"That, Ma'am is entirely up to you" he replied with a grin as he slipped quickly out the door before she could swat his arm.

"Oh that's just brilliant!" she said sarcastically as she stood beside the sofa "Instead of going back up to my nice, comfortable bed, I'm stuck here waiting for sleeping beauty to wake up!"

Jack mumbled some unintelligible gibberish before he rolled over and began to snore slightly.

"Sleep well my prince," she said as she leaned over and gently placed a gentle kiss to his forehead. "We have a lot to talk about in the morning"

TO BE CONTINUED...


	2. Chapter 2chapter 2

**Really trying not to go so long between updates this time :)**

M shifted uncomfortably in the chair, drifting in and out of sleep herself, while she waited for Jack to wake. As soon as he began to stir, she out of her chair, sitting on the edge of the sofa beside him.

"Jack...Jack, can you hear me?" she asked quietly

Jack thrashed about slightly, mumbling something about James and M, he kept repeating her name as if she were in some sort of mortal danger.

"Jack!" she said, lightly patting his cheek "It's ok, I'm right here, open your eyes"

Before she knew what was happening, Jack suddenly sat up, grabbed her wrists and pinned her down on the sofa. His eyes were almost wild and she could see the mixture of fear and anger on his face as he hovered over her. Her own training kicked in, and she resisted the overwhelming urge to struggle against him, fearing that he may unintentionally harm them both. Instead, she began to speak slowly and quietly, hoping that she could calm him before he did any real damage.

"Jack" she said quietly "It's me, M"

"M?" he replied, looking down at her with a rather confused expression which quickly turned to a look of relief, followed by one of embarrassment as he released her wrists and sat up.

M lay completely still for a few minutes to be sure that he was fully awake and aware of the fact that, at the moment, neither one of them appeared to be in any sort of danger. Once she was absolutely sure he was fully awake, she sat up and gently put her hand on his shoulder.

"Jack, Are you alright?" she asked, as he sat beside her with his elbows resting on his knees and his head in his hands

"I could have killed you," he finally said as he reached out and rested his hand on her knee

"It wasn't your fault. You had no idea where you were or who I was" she replied as she leaned over and gently turned his face so that he was looking at her.

Jack reached over and took her small hand in his as he gently brought it to his lips, placing a soft kiss to her palm. As he held her hand to his face, she could feel a tear slide down his cheek, and immediately pulled him to her, his head resting on her chest and held him close.

"It's alright now Jack. You're here and you're safe," she said as she gently stroked the back of his head.

"Where's James?" he asked after a few moments

"Where's James!" she said in a slightly annoyed tone "Someone drugs you, you end up unconscious on my sofa, you nearly kill me and all you can day is where's James!"

"YEAH, WHERE'S JAMES? He was with me, or at least I think he was with me before I blacked out"

M pulled away angrily, rose from the sofa and began to pace around the sitting room.

"007 isn't here at the moment, and I'm fine, thank you for asking!" she snapped

"Well where is he?"

"Where so you think? He is out looking for whoever did this to you. Now if you will excuse me, I am going up to grab shower and get dressed," she said with a slight crack in her voice as she turned and headed toward the door

Jack rose and quickly crossed the room, catching up to her just as she reached the door, where he slid his arms around her waist and pulled her back to him, holding her gently but firmly.

"I'm sorry M. Are you alright? "He whispered in her ear as he lightly kissed her neck "I've missed you"

"I could tell by the numerous phone calls and lengthy e mails you've sent since you were here last," she snapped sarcastically

"Well it's not like I was off playing tiddlywinks with manhole covers. I was away on a complicated mission. I told you that it would be difficult to communicate for a while"

"All you had to do was send a message that said," I'm ok" or was that too much to ask?" she replied as she turned in his arms and buried her head in his shoulder, "I was worried about you. I thought that you had changed your mind about us and..."

"Hey" he said softly as he tilted her chin up "I have changed my mind about a lot of things, but not about you, so when this lead came up and everything started pointing in your direction, all I could think about was getting to you" he said as he leaned down and captured her lips in a deep kiss

"And yet you chose to contact James first" she said as she broke the kiss

"Damn it Olivia, I knew he could keep you safe until I got here!"He snapped

"Don't you dare use that tone with me!" she retorted angrily, "If you had information about the safety and security of this country, you should have followed protocol and contacted me, NOT one of my agents!"

"For your information, it was not about the safety and security of your precious country, it was about YOU...Your safety...your security!"

"What?" she asked, with a rather stunned look on her face

"Yeah, that's right. Whoever made the threats made them against YOU personally. I called James to have him look after you until I could get here so we could work together and keep you safe." he replied angrily

M pulled away from him and walked across the room to the window trying to digest what Jack had just told her.

"Come away from that window!" shouted Jack as he pulled her back and yanked the curtains shut

"What the hell did you do that for?" she snapped

"The last thing we need is for you to make it easy for whoever it is by standing in front of the window! You may as well just stand on the front step with a giant bull's eye plastered to your head!"

"Jack! You are overreacting! For your information, these windows are triple pane, bullet proof glass which is coated with a special film that lets me see out, but no one can see in, so unless "they" have a rocket launcher or x-ray vision, I should be fairly safe" she replied as she came to stand in front of him

"I'm sorry M" he grumbled sheepishly "I suppose that it is possible that I might be overreacting just a bit,"

"You don't say," she replied with a nervous laugh as she wrapped her arms around him "I'm just really glad you're here," she said hugging him tightly

"Come sit with me," he said gently guiding her toward the sofa, where he put his arm around her as she curled up beside him.

"You do realize that I could have you shot for using my real name," she said as she playfully slapped his arm before resting her head against his shoulder

"Well it got your attention didn't it?"

"I suppose, but in all seriousness, what exactly are the threats you've been receiving?"

"They're not really threats per se. To be honest, at first, I thought it was you being "ratty" as you put it because I have been neglecting you, but whoever it is knows about us, they know what we do, they know that we're both friends of James, they knew about that damn ball or whatever you call it I took you to, you're routine right down to when you leave in the morning and when you come back, hell they even know what you have for lunch" he replied with a worried tone as he tightened his grip on her

"What made you think it was me sending the threats?" she asked quietly

"They appeared to come from your private email address, but when they began to get really odd, I had one of my guys trace the signal and found that it was being bounced all over the world thru multiple servers"

"So in essence, I've been hacked"

"It would appear so"

"How is it that you were drugged but James wasn't?" she asked through a small yawn

"I had a drink or two before he arrived, so they must have been watching. By the time James arrived, I must have appeared to be three sheets to the wind. James knows me well enough to have known that something was wrong so he must have brought me here"

"Well then it looks as though we're stuck here, at least until James returns and we can get to the bottom of this," she said as she snuggled closer

"Darn!...I mean darn, what an imposition" he replied with a grin as he leaned down and kissed her.

"Don't look so excited. We have a lot of work ahead of us" she said in a serious tone

"Or we could just lock the door and let James work this one out on his own" he replied with a wink

"Jack! If I didn't know better I would almost say that you were behind this whole thing!"

"Nope, can't take credit for this one although, I have to say if it didn't scare the hell out of me, it is a brilliant plan to get you alone" he said with a laugh

"Seriously Jack, we need some sort of plan"

"Right now, my PLAN is to take you upstairs and go to bed."

"Is that really a wise decision?" she replied with a mischievous grin

"If you remember from my last visit we determined that, although this is a very nice sofa, it really is not in our best interest to spend an entire evening here," he said with a grin as he stood and helped he to her feet

"But what about James?"

"M" he said in a mock serious tone "We have also already determined that your precious 007 is more than adept at letting himself into your flat anytime he likes. "

"You have a point there" she replied with a laugh as he began leading her to the stairs "But what if he arrives while we..."

"Sweetheart, all I really want to do right now is curl up beside you, hold you in my arms and keep you safe. If, by some chance, James arrives while we are asleep, let us hope that after the last time he interrupted us, he will have the good sense to find some way to make his presence known other than bursting into your bedroom" Jack replied with a smirk

"Don't count on it" she said under her breath as they headed up the stairs

TO BE CONTINUED...


	3. Chapter 3 Chapter 3

**For those who may be confused y some of the references in this story, it is a continuation of the story Chance Encounters. Just thought I would put that out there if you wanted to know just how M met Jack in the first place :)**

The sun was just beginning to peak thru the bedroom curtains when M finally opened her eyes, only to find Jack propped up on one elbow staring down at her with a rather silly grin on his face.

"Jack! What the hell are you doing?" she said sleepily as she glared up at him

"Have I ever told you how absolutely beautiful you are when you're sleeping?"

"I thought I told you it isn't polite to flirt with someone when they are half awake" she replied with a grin as she elbowed him in the ribs

"Ouch! that hurt" he yelped as he leaned over her, pinning her to the mattress before he bent down and kissed her deeply "You better be careful little lady" he said as he broke the kiss "I am a highly trained agent of the CIA..."

"Oh don't flatter yourself" she replied with a laugh "We've both received the same training" she finished as she reached up and traced the side of his face with her finger before pulling him down for another kiss

Just as Jack was about to respond, they heard a loud noise in the kitchen.

"M?...Jack?' shouted James

"Oh for the love of God, did you train him to have crappy timing or does he come by this annoying gift naturally?" snapped Jack as he leaned his forehead against hers

"Well, at least he didn't burst into the bedroom" replied M with a laugh

"There is that I suppose" he grumbled as he rolled over on his back, pulling M along with him so that her head was resting on his chest "WE'RE UP HERE JAMES" he shouted unhappily as M snuggled closer

"IF IT'S ALL THE SAME TO YOU, I'LL JUST WAIT DOWN HERE," replied James

Jack leaned down and placed a soft kiss to M's temple as he sat up.

"Guess we should go down and see what the boy wonder has found out"

"Do you have to call him that? It makes him sound like some sort of Comic book super hero," she said as she got up and retrieved her dressing gown

"Well isn't he? I mean he always seems to get himself in the damndest pickles and yet somehow come out smelling like a rose every single time, due largely in part, I assume, to your inability to let him fall flat on his face once in a while" he replied sarcastically

"That's the pot calling the kettle black isn't it?' she retorted slightly offended, "Let me remind you that it was James that rescued you last night and brought you here! I should think you would be grateful..."

"I am" he replied as he snaked his arms around her waist and pulled her close "It's just damn annoying sometimes is all" he finished as he lightly kissed her forehead

"Come on" she said as she untangled herself from his grasp "Let's go down and I'll put the kettle on while you go find out what he knows"

James had made himself comfortable in the sofa in the sitting room while he waited for M and Jack. He still wasn't quite used to the fact that his best friend had a thing for his boss, but as long as she was happy than who was he to interfere.

"Morning James"

"Jack. How are you feeling this morning?"

"Well, I've been better, but Oliv...I mean M is an excellent nurse so..."

"Ok you can stop right there. I don't need the sorted details. A simple "as well as can be expected" will suffice" replied James in a slightly uncomfortable tone

"Why James. I never took you for a prude"

"I'm not, but this is M we're talking about, and there are just some mental pictures I would prefer not to have stuck in my head"

"Point taken." replied Jack with a laugh as M came to stand beside him

"Anyone care to tell me what you find so amusing about this situation?" she asked as she looked back and forth between the two of them before placing the tray with the coffee on the table and moving to sit on the sofa, motioning for the two of them to sit.

"Oh nothing really" replied Jack with a smirk "It's just that James..."

"It was nothing M" James quickly interrupted before Jack could finish what would only lead to what most would consider a rather awkward conversation.

"Yes...Well perhaps we should just stick to the facts at the moment shall we?" she said with a slight edge in her voice

"Right" replied James as he pulled out a small note pad "I've retraced your steps from the hotel to the pub, spoken to everyone you came into contact with except for the waitress at the pub and..."

"And?" replied M curiously

"Nothing really. Q was able to analyze the drug used and found that it was a mixture of Chinese Herbs, basically harmless in small doses. He said it is a mixture used in the South China Sea region for medicinal purposes and should have no lasting effects"

"Well that's good to know" replied Jack dryly "What about the emails?"

"I've had Q checking on those as well and it would appear that M's personal computer was hacked..."

"Thank you for pointing out the obvious 007, but why? And by whom?" asked M

"Therein lies the sixty-four thousand dollar question" replied James with a somewhat perplexed look

"What about M?...is she safe here? I mean if they can get to her computer then they must know her address as well," said Jack as he put his arm protectively around M's shoulder

"I've given that some thought and the only thing I've come up with at this point is to relocate the two of you to a safe house until we can determine how much of a threat this is..."

"What about..." M started to say before being abruptly cut short by Jack

"How much of a threat!" snapped Jack "They've hacked into her computer, monitored her movements...They know every detail of her life professionally and personally...No, I think we should get her to a secure location, but one they don't know about and I was thinking about RAF Croughton, they would never think to look for her on a U.S. Military base..."

"How about..." she started again, only to be interrupted by a rather agitated James this time

"If you think for one minute that we would ever consider "Hiding" the head of MI6 on a U.S. Military base than you clearly are suffering some unknown side effect of that drug...," shouted James

"We have to take her somewhere safe as clearly they have access to..."

"ENOUGH!" shouted M as she rose and angrily walked to the door before turning and shooting them one of her famous death glares "I am going to go up and have a shower and dress, and when I get back, I expect you two overgrown prepubescent teenagers to have dispensed with this rather unattractive posturing maneuver and come up with a real solution to our current problem...IS THAT CLEAR?"

Jack and James sat quietly and stared at her, stunned by her sudden and rather uncharacteristic outburst.

"Oliv...I mean M, we are only concerned with your safety" said Jack apologetically as he rose and started toward her.

M immediately put her hand, stopping him in his tracks.

"DO NOT PATRONIZE ME! While I understand that my safety is a major concern at the moment, I am not so sure that you two are the best choice for handling this situation, as clearly, you BOTH have a severe conflict of interest. I am no different than any other head of state that happens to find themselves in a rather precarious security situation so please TRY to keep that in mind. And Jack..." she said leaning in, close enough so that James shouldn't be able to hear "If you EVER slip and say my real name in public again...I will not hesitate to drop you where you stand...DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?"

"Crystal M" he replied quietly as she turned and disappeared up the stairs

James sat in the chair, wincing and shaking his head as Jack turned around.

"And just what is that look for?' snapped Jack

"Welcome to my world old friend" replied James with a grin "I merely mentioned that I knew her real name once and she threatened to end me"

"She's right you know," replied Jack as he slumped down on the sofa "We are acting like a couple of horny teenage guys, after the same girl"

"Yeah, but this isn't just ANY girl"

"You can say that again. So got any brilliant ideas?"

"Maybe. Let me make a call" replied James as he took out his mobile and dialed the only logical, impartial person he could think of. "Tanner? This is Bond. I need to talk to you about M," he said with a wink

TO BE CONTINUED...


	4. Chapter 4 Chapter 4

**Finally. I got time to finish this chapter. Sorry for the wait.**

Jack sat and patiently waited for either M to finish her shower and return or James to conclude his conversation with Tanner and explain his "New" plan for handling the situation. As he shifted uncomfortably on the sofa, James suddenly appeared in the doorway with a rather curious grin across his face.

"Well? Out with it. What did Tanner have to say?" asked Jack "And just how can you stand there with that asinine grin on your face knowing full well that she's been up there long enough to have worked out every last detail of her second assault on us!"

"Calm down Jack" replied James as he leaned against the doorframe "First off, Tanner has things handled at the office for the next few days. Officially, M is away on a family emergency until further notice. Second, and you will learn this with time, M does not waste her time with second assaults. She is a firm believer in taking care of business the first time around, so count yourself lucky that you at least got the benefit of a warning," he said with a grin

James noticed the look of worry on Jack's face as he kept glancing at the door.

"She's been up there a long time. I better go and check on her" said Jack as he rose and started toward the door

"Let Me," said James quietly "I know she has strong feelings for you, but she still doesn't know you all that well. If she won't talk to me friend to friend, she may at least talk to me boss to agent"

James headed up the stairs and down the hall to M's bedroom. The door was open far enough so that he could see her just sitting on the edge of the bed, staring at her feet. James knocked lightly as he opened the door a bit further.

"M May I come in?

"What is it James?" she replied quietly

"You've been up here a long time and we were starting to get worried. Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," she snapped "I'm sorry James, this isn't your fault, and it's just that I thought once the business with Silva was over, I would finally be safe and able to resume my life, but as you can see..."

"Things aren't exactly working out that way are they,"" he said finishing her sentence

"No, they are not, and now I've involved yet another person I happen to love. James, I just don't think I can do this again," she said as she looked at him with tears beginning to form in her eyes

James quickly moved to sit beside her, gently putting his arm around her, pulling her close so that her head was resting against his shoulder.

"M. Jack and I are not about to let some bloody cyber peeping tom get anywhere near you" he said as he gently placed a kiss to her forehead

"I want to see it," she said through a sniffle

"What?"

"The evidence, you know the emails"

"Just the emails?" he asked

"What do you mean JUST the emails? Is there more?" she replied in a rather demanding tone as she attempted to pull away

"M, let me explain," he said as he reached out in an attempt to cup her cheek,

She quickly slapped his hand away as she angrily rose and glared at him

"What exactly is there to explain? You and Jack both said that he had received peculiar emails..."

"And that part is true. Jack only received the emails..."

"I've had just about enough of your cryptic conversations 007, would you please be so kind as to give me the full, Unabbreviated version of the situation!" she snapped as she put her hands on her hips and continued glaring at him

"I didn't want to frighten you until we had a chance to authenticate the evidence," he said, rising to stand in front of her

"What evidence!"

"There are photos as well, recent photos of you..."

M arched her eyebrow as she dropped her hands to her side "Go on"

"Q found them, imbedded in the emails..."

"Does Jack know?" she asked

"No, not yet. Tanner only told me a few minutes ago when I spoke to him"

"And just why were you speaking to Tanner?"

"I needed his assistance in explaining your absence for the next few days."

"And just where do you two comic book super hero's intend to take me?"

"It is clear that Jack and I will never agree on a safe place to take you, so I've concluded that the best place to keep you safe is right here in your own home."

"Really?" she said sarcastically "Why not Buckingham Palace, I hear they have an excellent security system"

"M..."

"Did it ever occur to either of you to ask me what I think we should do? In case you have forgotten, I WAS an agent long before you were out of short trousers, and I do know a thing or two about security!"

"M, we want...I want you where I can get to you if need be. It isn't that I don't trust Jack, In fact he would lay down his life to protect you, but...well it's complicated, and to be honest, I don't think he can be overly objective in this particular situation"

"And you can?" she said reaching up to cup his cheek

"M protecting you has always and will always be my primary objective," he said quietly as he covered her hand with his. "I happen to love you. You are my teacher, my mentor and my friend. I also happen to be very fond Jack, and if he makes you happy then I will not let anything stand in your way of happiness" he finished as he leaned down and placed a gentle kiss to her lips

M stared at James as she took a step back, never breaking eye contact. She was not quite sure what to make of James declaration of Love and Loyalty. The mood was finally broken when they heard Jack loudly clear his throat.

"Am I interrupting something?" asked Jack with a noticeable hint of jealousy in his voice

"No more than usual" quipped James

"Now now boys" replied M as she crossed the room and placed a quick kiss to Jacks lips "Let's try to concentrate on the situation at hand shall we?" she finished as she headed out the door and down the stairs

"What the hell was that all about?' asked Jack in a rather irritated tone

"Relax Jack. She loves YOU. I can't for the life of me understand what she sees in you, but she loves you and that's all that matters," he said as he followed her down stairs.

James and Jack found M sitting on the sofa, quietly cursing at the laptop in front of her as she angrily tapped away trying to get the bloody machine to accept her password.

"I hate this damn machine. I swear it is possessed by demons that are determined to drive me insane," she snapped angrily

"What seems to be the problem?" asked James as he took the computer from her before she had a chance to launch it into the foyer.

"I understand the need for security, but is it really necessary for me to change the bloody password every 72 hours!"

"Well, perhaps if you did that instead of using the workaround, thus bypassing the security system, we would not be in our current predicament," replied James with a smirk

"That will be enough out of you!" she replied with an angry glare "And don't you even think of adding your two cents worth!" she said looking at Jack, who was desperately trying to suppress a giggle

"We had to change your password," said James as he quickly typed away on the keyboard "There Ma'am, good as new" he finished, handing her back the offending laptop

"And just why did you...oh never mind, now where are the pictures" she demanded as she began scrolling thru her e mails

"Well, not on there" quipped James as he handed her a small flash drive

"Wait...what pictures?" Chimed Jack as he sat beside M

"There were pictures imbedded in the emails. I surprised that your geek squad didn't find them," replied James sarcastically

"Which email? We went over them with a fine tooth comb, there were no imbedded pictures!"

"They were in the last email"

"Let me see that!" snapped Jack snatching the laptop from M "I never received that email?" said Jack as he was reading the text

"And M, if you would occasionally look at your junk mail, you would have discovered that there were a number of emails sent to you, supposedly from Jack"

"Well how the hell would I have known they were from Jack if they were in the junk mail? Q has always told me to ignore those!"

"To be precise, he said don't open them, not ignore them" replied James

"James..." M began as Jack quickly interrupted her

"What the hell!"

"What is it?" she said leaning over to look at the screen

Jack began scrolling thru the pictures that Q had managed to find and he was not the least bit amused by what he saw. The screen displayed picture after picture of M on multiple occasions, in the company of Garreth Mallory. There was one of them appearing to be enjoying a nice quiet dinner, then there was one of him appearing to kiss her cheek and the next was of him with his arm around her and the list went on.

"I've seen enough!" snapped Jack as he angrily handed the computer back

"What is this?" said M in a rather confused and angry tone

"YOU TELL ME!" replied Jack

"Just what are you implying?" she asked angrily

"They say a picture is worth a thousand words and these..."

"THESE are fabricated" interjected James, clearly frustrated by Jack and M's behavior

Jack and M literally stopped mid-sentence and stared at James

"I beg your pardon?"

"I said these pictures along with the ones of Jack, which by the way, you haven't even gotten to yet, are completely fabricated."

"What makes you say that?" asked Jack inquisitively

"Because I know M, and if you look closely at her hands in the picture, they aren't hers. No matter where she goes or what she's doing, she always wears her rings, and if you notice, those rings in the photo are not hers, nor has she ever chosen such a gaudy watch" James replied as he enlarged the picture

Jack was speechless as he looked at the picture then took her hand in his to inspect the rings. M was also a bit stunned by the newest revelation.

"Whoever is doing this is quite handy at photo editing. The pictures of Jack with all the other women are also fabricated," he continued

"How can you tell?" asked M

"Because Jack has a fading scar on his right shoulder, but if you look at the photo's, once again, NO scar" he said bluntly

"Oh this is all getting to be too much" replied M as she sat the computer on the table and leaned back against Jack

"No. This is an inside job," said James as he turned to leave

"And just where do you think you're going?" asked M wearily

"To get some answers," he replied

"Hey, by the way, what's my luggage doing in the hall?" asked Jack

"I took the liberty of clearing out your hotel room. Since you won't be going back there for a while, I thought you might enjoy a change of clothes," he said with a grin

"Oh. Good thinking" replied Jack as he let out a long, frustrated sigh

"I'll be back later. That should give you two time to kiss and make up for your collective childish behavior," he said as he disappeared around the corner and out the door.

Jack leaned back and put his arm around M, pulling her close as he kissed her forehead.

"Sorry about the way I reacted. I know that you don't belong to me, but I had hoped that..."

M looked up at him as she reached up and pulled him into a deep kiss.

"Does THAT answer your question?" she said as she broke the kiss and smiled

"I don't know" he replied with a crooked grin "I might just need a little more convincing" he said as he kissed her again.

TO BE CONTINUED...


	5. Chapter 5 Chapter 5

**Sorry this took so long, but life got in the way, and The characters sort of hijacked the story and I had to regain control of the story hehe.**

Jack and M remained on the sofa, content with occasional moments of intense passion, quickly followed by a series of catnaps.

"Well, don't we make a fine pair?" said M sleepily as she shifted to a more comfortable position on the sofa

"You're the one who said we had to behave. I for one would have taken this little party the second floor hours ago, but you said and I quote "We must be sure not to be caught in a compromising position when James returns", which judging by the way he tells time could be hours" replied Jack with a frown

"I know it sounds ridiculous, after all I am a grown woman, but James is..."

"Yeah, about him. Just exactly is James to you?"

"I'm not sure there is an easy answer to that particular question," she said flatly, as she sat up

"Well, why don't you throw caution to the wind and run an explanation up the flagpole and see who salutes" he said half joking and half serious

"It's not what you think Jack" she said quietly

"Judging from the way he kissed you, I'm not so sure"

"James is..."

"Yes"

"Well, simply put, James is the love of my life" she replied, "That being said, I need to clarify my answer so that there are no misunderstandings. I love James with all my heart. I would give my life for him and him for me, but it is in no way a physical love," she said turning to face Jack "Aside from Tanner, James knows me better than anyone else on the planet. Christ, I am closer to him than I am my own children. With him, there is no need for explanations or secrets because we keep the same secrets. I'm never afraid when he is near because I know he will always be there when I really need him...I...is any of this making sense?" she asked as she searched Jack's eyes for any sort of comprehension

"When you say it, it makes perfect sense" he said reaching out to cup her cheek "But is it possible that you have room in your heart for someone else who also loves you and can keep a secret like nobody's business?"

"As far as I am concerned, he may have captured my heart years ago, but you are the one who outright stole it" as she gently kissed him

Jack snaked his arms around her, pulling her into a deep kiss before he started to giggle at first, before he broke the kiss with a rather comical, dumbfounded look on his face.

"Glad to see that you found my statement so amusing" she said crisply as she pulled away from him

"I'm sorry M, it's not you, it was something you said" he replied as he reached over and brushed her cheek with the pad of his thumb and smiled

"Care to elaborate?"

"I think James was on to something when he said he thought it was an inside job!" he said with a grin

"I'm not sure I follow?"

"Do you trust me?"

"Of course...Why?"

"Go up and pack an overnight bag. Just the essentials."

"Why? Where are we going?" she asked as she rose and headed for the stairs

"Let's just say that if it's excitement they want, then I am more than willing to oblige" he said with a wink "Oh and do you happen to have the number for that computer wizard of yours? You know Mr. X?"

"You mean Q?" she said with a laugh

"Yeah, that guy. I have something I want him to check for me"

"You know you could just call James and have him ask...," she said as she scrolled down her contact list, stopping on Q's number before handing him the phone

"No this is something I want to do myself" he replied

"You know who it is don't you?" she said curiously

"Call it a gut feeling, but darlin, there are only two people who have the means and motive to pull off this little stunt. If I am correct then the first will let it go once they know we know so as not to create any public embarrassment..."

"And what if it's the second?"

"It it's the second, then we draw straws to see who's going to kill them first"

"And what if you're wrong?"

"Then we go out together in style" he said as he crossed the room and kissed her forehead before swatting her on the behind as she started up the stairs

As soon as M reached the top of the stairs, she could hear Jack speaking to Q in a hushed tone. Something about time stamps on the emails and back tracing signals. Although she had a vague idea of what he was talking about, frankly, she was clueless about how any of these things really work. "I have people to take care of these issues so I don't have to be bothered with the details," she thought as she grabbed her overnight bag and began packing. When she returned to the sitting room, nothing could have prepared her for the sight before her eyes. The room looked as though it had been hit by a small tornado, with Jack standing in the middle, holding her Waterford Crystal decanter in his hand.

"Do you have any sentimental attachment to this?" he asked as he raised his hand

"Yes! As a matter of fact I do. It cost a small fortune, AND it was an anniversary gift!" She said as she quickly snatched it from his hand. "What the HELL do you think you're doing?"

"Setting the stage" he said proudly as he grabbed a glass from the liquor cabinet "How about this?"

"How about this what?"

"Any attachments to this glass?"

"Look, do you suppose you could tear yourself away from this sudden need to smash things long enough to tell me what you think you're doing?"

Jack put the glass down and crossed the room, wrapping his arms around M, and resting his forehead against hers.

"They need to think we were taken by force," he said in a serious tone

"And just who do you suppose is going to clean up this mess when this is over? I don't have a cleaning fairy you know"

"Don't worry, I'll put it all back when this is over" he said as he leaned down and kissed her

"I'm going to hold you to that!" she said as she returned the kiss

To Be Continued...


	6. Chapter 6 chapter 6

M followed Jack around the house for about an hour, cleaning or rather attempting to clean up the mess he was making of her flat. Just as she was about to pick up a stack of papers he had flung on the floor, Jack caught her hand and pulled her to him.

"Olivia! For Christ sake, what Are you doing?" he asked

"It would stand to reason that if we had, in fact, been abducted, our abductors would only destroy one, possibly two rooms, NOT my entire flat!" she snapped as she pulled her hand back "And have you any intention of telling James about your little plan? He will be scared to death when he gets here and sees this mess, and us nowhere to be found, not to mention the fact that he will personally obliterate you when he finds out that you planned this in the first place without informing him?" she said

"I need him to be as surprised as the rest in order to flush out the real culprit in this charade," he said as he took the papers she was holding and threw then into the air, letting them fall.

"Then I can assume from your answer that you do not believe that James is behind this?'

"Not on your life, figuratively or literally. James is a lot of things, but a fool he is not. He may enjoy winding you up from time to time..."

"That would be an understatement," she said under her breath

"But, he would never do something that would genuinely hurt you. I think that whoever is doing this is not trying to physically harm you, but rather they are trying to drive US apart," he said dryly

"What makes you say that?"

"Go look at the pictures again and read the emails. They all allude to the fact that apparently we have both found comfort in the arms of others. I think they were designed to create tension between us, you know to keep us apart..."

"To create jealousy..."

"Exactly, but who and why is the question. James would never do that to you. I know he loves you and if he even thought he stood a chance with you he would fight like nobody's business, but he would do so like a gentleman. He would not use emails and photos, embedded in emails to win this particular battle. That would be childish in his eyes, a duel at high noon is more his style" replied Jack

"Why were you so interested in the time stamps on the emails?"

"Because the last email was sent after I had arrived in London, and had it been James, he would have already known I was here, so whoever sent them had no idea where I was at the time."

"And the pictures of you?"

"I've got nothing on that subject, except to say that I look damn good in those pictures," he said with a laugh

"Ha ha, very funny" she said sarcastically

"So are you ready to go?"

"I suppose, but where are we going?"

"Someplace where we can have some damn time alone, without worrying about boy wonder bursting in on us every ten seconds," he replied with a wink

"Jack!"

"Now I'm serious. EVERY and I mean EVERY time I come to town, we are both surrounded by our people or James feels the need to poke his nose in the door or window or bloody keyhole. We never get more than an hour alone together and even then, one of our phones is ringing off the damn hook. If I wasn't so damn irritated by the whole situation, I would thank whoever IS behind this because it means I get to, in essence, kidnap you myself"

"Are you sure it isn't you that is behind this?" she asked teasingly

"Well if it was me, I sure as hell wouldn't have invited James along now would I?" he smirked

"I suppose not" she replied as she wrapped her arms around his waist, hugging him tightly.

"Come on" he said lightly kissing the top of her head as he led her toward the door

"I still think we should call James. You have no idea what he is capable of when given the right incentive, and using me as bait would definitely qualify as the right incentive" she said nervously

"Hells bells woman, will you stop worrying. He's a smart man, hell you trained him, he will figure this out" replied Jack as he stood on the curb and hailed a taxi

Once in the taxi, Jack leaned forward, handed the driver a slip of paper with an address, and then settled back with his arm securely around M.

"It won't be long now," he said as he leaned his head against hers.

"So let me guess, you have an old family mansion squirreled away in the heart of London and we're going there to hide?" she said playfully

"Don't be ridiculous," he said with a laugh "My family home is in the mountains of Tennessee"

M-M-M-M-

James had also had a rather busy and enlightening day. Once the initial shock of the threats against his friends had worn off, James had set off on a mission to find out exactly who was behind the whole thing and why. Enlisting the aid of Q and Tanner, the three of them had spent the better part of the day meticulously analyzing the emails and photos in hopes of finding some small clue as to the identity of the sender or senders.

"Q, have you found anything yet?" asked James as he studied the photos

"Well, yes and no" he replied with a rather perplexed look on his face.

"Well which is it? Yes or NO?"

"I can defiantly tell you that the first three emails supposedly sent from M were in fact sent from her computer, however, the last email containing the photos was not, and the responses to the first emails WAS sent from Agent Wards computer, but the last with the photo's was not...Quite a puzzle wouldn't you say?"

"Q! This isn't some bloody game, this is M we're talking about!" he snapped

"I know, that is what makes it such a mystery. M is many things, but a master of technology she is not. Sure she can arm and disarm a bomb faster than anyone I know, but when it comes to computers..."

"She can turn it On and Off, anything else and she requires assistance" chimed Tanner with a slight grin as he came to stand beside James

"Tanner, how nice of you to finally join us, what have you found out?"

"I checked into Agent Ward's people like you asked, and his communications man, a Captain Peters is exceptionally skilled at what he does, and he was with Jack on his latest mission. Like you suspected, Agent Ward and his people are a tight knit group. There is not much they wouldn't do for him. I also checked into the photos of M and they all appear to be from an official reception at Whitehall a few months ago." he replied

"Well...Who has access to those photos?"

"They are in the secure archives, so basically, the entire intelligence committee, the PM and M"

"Well we can certainly rule out the PM as a suspect." snorted James

"Obviously, but that leaves M and the rest of the committee"

"The only one who has any interest in M would be Mallory, I can't really see the rest of the committee giving a monkeys butt what she gets up to in her private life"

"I think we can safely rule out M as well. She wouldn't have a clue how to access those photos, nor would she know how to alter them if she did," replied Tanner

"Well whoever it is seems fairly intent on keeping M and Agent Ward apart"

"Why do you say that?"

"Look at the text in the messages, it talks about how she has found ways to keep herself busy since he appears to have lost interest in her, and the last bit about having gone off the idea of seeing each other..."replied Q

"So the photos were, in essence, proof that she had moved on?" asked James quizzically

"I think so, but that does not explain the photos of Agent Ward"

"If you have no further need for me here, I think I will be going back to my office," said Tanner rather abruptly

"Fine, we'll cal if we need you," replied James as he watched Tanner disappear thru the door "Q, I want you to access those archived photos, I want to see who has been looking at them. I'm sure whoever it was has already erased any trace of their presence, but I have faith that you can make it reappear,"

"You really love her don't you" said Q quietly

"More than life itself, but it would appear that I am not the only one" he said mysteriously

"You have an idea don't you?"

"Call it a hunch," he said grabbing his coat "Call me when you have an answer. I'm going to check on Jack and M."

M-M-M-M-

Jack and M finally arrived at their destination. It was an old manor house that had been converted into a hotel. Once they had checked in, they went straight to their room, which was located in the back of the hotel. The room was nothing special. It had the usual furnishings, a chest of drawers, a small wardrobe, a TV, a bed and a window with bars on it and lovely view of the garage.

"Well, you have certainly outdone yourself this time," said M as she looked around the room

"It's better than a safe house" he replied with a grin

"Why on earth did you register under the name of Mr. and Mrs. Lionel Hardcastle?"

"It was the first name that popped into my head"

"You really have been watching too much British Television," she said with a laugh

"Oh I don't know, He got the girl in the end" he replied pulling her into a deep kiss

"You know," she said in between kisses "It could be hours before James manages to track us down"

"I'm counting on that," he said as he continued to place soft kisses to her neck while he fiddled with the buttons on her blouse

Jack gently lifted her and placed her on the bed, crawling in beside her. As he hovered over her, he could see a mixture of excitement and fear cross her eyes.

"What is it?" he asked as he lightly brushed the pad of his thumb across her bottom lip before kissing her again

"I just keep waiting for the other shoe to drop," she said quietly

"What shoe?"

"You said it yourself. Every time we get a moment alone, James comes bursting thru the door or one of our phones goes of alerting us to a world crisis that needs our attention..."

"Not this time" he said as he began to kiss her collarbone while his hands began to roam over her body "And to be quite honest, I left the phones at your flat, and I have no intention of answering the door, should someone knock"

"I love you Jack," she said as she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him into a deep kiss

"I love you too M" he replied

TO BE CONTINUED...


	7. Chapter 7 Chapter 7

**I just couldn't make you wait for this part of the puzzle hehe hope you enjoy.**

James arrived at M's flat and was about to knock, something he was truly unaccustomed to doing, when he saw that the door was slightly ajar. Quickly unholstering his gun, he proceeded in apprehensively. The first thing he noticed was the fact that the entire flat was in total disarray. Paper strewn everywhere and furniture overturned. To the untrained eye, it would look like a massive fight had ensued, but upon further investigation, he noticed that nothing, aside from the occasional drinking glass had been broken.

"Bloody hell" he growled as he searched the entire flat to find it empty "What are those two up to now?"

Once he was sure that M and Jack were missing, for lack of a better word, he pulled out his phone and "played along" with the scenario Jack had set in motion and phoned Tanner.

"Tanner...It's Bond. Both M and Jack are missing, it looks as if they have been abducted, and not without quite a struggle"

The look of shock on Tanners face spoke volumes as Eve listened intently to the one sided conversation.

"What! Are you sure? I'll inform Mallory at once and we'll set things in motion to lock down the city until they are found," shouted Tanner, who was nearly beside himself

"Tanner what is it?" asked Eve

"It's M and Jack, someone has trashed her flat and they are missing," he said in near hysterics

"How the hell did that happen? You said that..."

"Not now Eve, we have a REAL problem on our hands" he said as he turned his attention back to James "I'll have Q activate M's tracking device"

"Good, I'll search thru things here and see if I can find any clues as to where they might be," replied James as he rather absentmindedly leafed thru some papers on the floor

"I'll also have Q track her phone..."

"No need, I found it on the table" interrupted James "I'm on my way back to headquarters, we'll discuss a plan when I get there" he finished before he hung up the phone.

Tanner hung up the phone and looked as though he was about to become physically ill

"What do we do now?" asked Eve with a worried expression etched across her face

"WE have the dubious honor of informing the head of the Intelligence and Security Committee that the Head of MI6 has suddenly gone missing along with the Head Field Agent for the CIA"

"Nothing like starting an International incident first thing on a Monday morning," she said under her breath

M-M-M-M-

Jack lay on his side doing the one thing M absolutely hated. He was watching her sleep again.

"If I make love to you again, will you please stop watching me sleep?" she said keeping her eyes shut

"How do you know I'm watching you if you're eyes are shut?" he asked with a grin

"I just do, and I don't appreciate it" she replied in an annoyed tone

"Well, since you are clearly awake, may I ask you a question?"

"Why do you insist on asking me such stupid questions? You're going to ask regardless of my answer," she said rolling over on her side so she was facing him.

"Just being polite," he said as he slid closer and pulled her to him so that her head was resting on his chest.

"Well...are you going to ask or are you going to keep me in suspense all morning?" she said picking her head up to look in his eyes

Jack reached over and caressed her cheek before planting a kiss to the tip of her nose.

"Why did you do it?' he asked

"Do what?" she replied with a completely bewildered look

"If you wanted my attention, you could have just called"

"Just what are you implying?" she said defensively

"Sweetheart, one of my many talents is that I am a linguist at heart. I know that you sent the first two emails," he said as he studied her face carefully

"I did no such thing!" she snapped pulling away from him

"Oh your lips say No, but the text does not lie. Linguistically speaking, the text has all the hallmark markers of being from you, right down to the ever so proper phrasing, but what puzzles me is the last email, you know, the one with the photos"

M's eyes began to fill with tears as she turned away from him.

"It was not supposed to happen like this" she said thru a sniffle as she got out of bed and wrapped herself in her dressing gown "But you are wrong on one point" she said as she turned to face him "I only sent one email"

"Then how do you explain the others?"

"I can't," she said with a look of total bewilderment  
"Who do you, think sent the others?" he asked as he slipped on his trousers and came to stand beside her

"I...I..."

As she was trying to form a coherent response, there was a loud bang on the door

"Well, that didn't take him long," muttered Jack as he ambled toward the door to find a rather angry James staring back at him

"Is she alright!" he demanded as he pushed his way into the room

"Relax James, she's fine" said Jack as he closed the door

M stood across the room, pulling her dressing gown tighter around her as she stared at the floor. James noticed that she looked as though she was about to cry and immediately took her in his arms.

"What is it M? What has he done?"

"Nothing" she whispered, "He's done nothing wrong"

"What the hell were you two thinking?"

"I was thinking it would be nice to have some privacy"

"You could have told me, I nearly had a stroke when I saw her flat!"

"Relax James. That was all done for appearance sake. Oh and you can call off your people. I believe that the threat to M has passed," he said winking at M

"Oh I wouldn't be so sure." replied James as escorted M to the bed and motioned for her to sit

"James, I know who sent the emails..."

"Correction. You know who sent the first email" interrupted James

A scowl immediately formed on Jacks face as he sat beside M and put his arm around her.

"Just how do you know that it was NOT me that the other emails?"

"M, We all love and adore you, but we also know that there is no way on earth that you sent the other emails" he said as gently as he could so as not to alarm her "So unless you suddenly became an expert at photo editing and encryption methods..."

"There is still someone out there," said Jack, finishing the sentence

James nodded as he pulled up a chair and sat in front of them

"But why?" she asked with a look of both anger and fear in her eyes

"I don't think it's as sinister as it appears" replied James "And if things play out the way I think, we should know in a matter of hours the WHO and WHY" he said, patting her hand reassuringly

"This is why people like me should Not have personal relationships," she said angrily

"No, this is why people like you should just pick up a bloody phone once in a while" he snapped as he glared at Jack

"Hey, I was on a mission alright," retorted Jack defensively

"And she was sitting here, twiddling her thumbs, thinking you had all but abandoned her" replied James angrily "All of this could have been avoided if you had just picked up a phone once in a while and..."

"This has to stop!" said M firmly as she glared at the two men

"What?" they both said in unison

"I made a mistake. I should have just called, but how was I to know that...this, whatever it is was going to happen? And furthermore, you two constantly bickering over me is not helping, not to mention the fact that it is bloody annoying!" she snapped

"Oh Jimmy, now you've done it, Mother's angry" smirked Jack

James and M found no humor in Jack's comment as they both shot him icy glares.

"What did I say?" asked Jack with a confused and concerned look as M turned away from him, and a tear slid down her cheek.

"That's what Silva called her...Mother," replied James as he reached over and squeezed her hand

"Oh Jesus M, I'm sorry" he said quietly

"It's alright Jack" she sniffed, as she leaned against him "You had no way of knowing"

"Right then. Why don't you two get dressed while I phone the office and see where we stand?" said James as he rose to make the call

"James. Why don't you go on ahead? We will meet you there in a little while" said Jack as he stood up and pulled M up along with him.

"And leave you two armature Houdini's to do another disappearing act? Not on your life"

"Well then can we at least have a few minutes alone?" asked Jack as he put his arm around M

"Fine, but don't even think about escaping out the back door" replied James as he went to make the call in the hall.

Jack waited until the door was firmly sure before he turned to M and wrapped his arms around her.

"I love you M," he said as he nuzzled her neck

"I'm sure I don't know why after the way I have behaved," she said as she pulled back to look at him

"Hey, you were just trying to get my attention..."

"And as a result, I nearly created an International Incident" she said with a rather embarrassed expression

"Well that would be one way of looking at it," he said with a grin

"You mean there is another way to look at it?"

"It hasn't been all bad. I got you all to myself for a few hours, AND we can cross one more thing off our bucket list" he replied with a silly grin

"You really are incorrigible you know that?" she said swatting his arm

"And that's why you love me" he said as gave her a quick kiss and turned toward the bathroom "Care to join me for a quick shower?"

"If I join you, knowing you, it will be anything but quick" she said with a laugh "And besides, James is waiting for us"

"Let him wait" replied Jack as he scooped up M and shut the bathroom door.

TO BE CONTINUED...


	8. Chapter 8 Chapter 8

**Only one more chapter after this. Thank you so much for the reviews, I really appreciate them.**

The ride back to headquarters was rather quiet. M sat in the back seat, seemingly lost in her own thoughts as James and Jack sat in the front chattering away like a couple of giddy school girls. The longer M thought about the events of the last few days, the more things just did not seem to add up. When they finally arrived, Jack quickly exited the front seat and helped M out of the car, and noticed that she seemed a bit preoccupied.

"Everything alright?" he asked as he closed the door and put his arm around her protectively

"What? Oh...yes...fine" she said as they headed to her office

James came around the car and stood beside them, noting that M had "THAT LOOK", the look that she always had when she was concentrating, the one she usually had right before she let loose with one of her famous rants.

"Shall we?" he said motioning toward the lift

Once inside the lift, James pushed the button for the lower levels

"Where are we going? My office if you recall is on the top floor," said M dryly

"Yes, but we need to stop by Q's office before heading up there" replied James "It won't take more than a minute"

The lab seemed all but deserted as James disappeared into Q's office and returned a few minutes later with Q in tow.

"Now we're ready," said James, who seemed suddenly, very cheerful

"M, Agent Ward" said Q as he nodded to them

"Q" she replied as she nodded back "Anyone care to tell me what is going on?"

"Just needed to get all our "ducks in a row" so to speak before heading to your office" replied James with a smirk

"007, if you don't stop speaking in metaphors, I am personally going to slap that silly grin right off your face," she snapped

"Right...Shall we go?" replied James in a much more serious tone as he ushered them toward the lift.

When the lift doors opened M was shocked to find that, apparently, every employee that worked in the building seemed to be located on the top floor, each scurrying around with a look of determination or fear, she couldn't quite decide, as they were handing papers back and forth while talking on their phones and bolting down the hall as though the bloody building was on fire. It was not until a junior member of the secretary pool saw her and stopped dead in her tracks, dropping her phone that M grasped the nature of the excitement.

"What the hell is this James? An exercise at multi-tasking?" she asked suspiciously

"HE HAS FOUND THEM!" shouted the young woman, as slowly the rest of the employees stopped what they were doing, turned and stared at their much loved and apparently no longer missing leader. After an awkward and yet brief pause, the hall erupted into claps and cheers as one by one the staff came to congratulate James and welcome M and Jack.

"YOU had better have a damn good explanation for all of this!" she said under her breath

"Oh I do," quipped James as he escorted her to her office, only to find Tanner, Eve, Mallory and Captain Peters via Skype waiting for them.

As James entered the office and stepped aside to reveal M, standing behind him, there was an audible gasp followed by a collective sigh of relief, followed by total silence.

As M looked around the room at her most trusted friends and advisors, she could see the look of relief mixed with terror etched across each face. As she moved across the room toward her desk, it suddenly struck her that the scene was slightly reminiscent of Moses parting the Red Sea as everyone moved aside, effectively clearing her path.

James stood near the door with a crooked grin as he waited for someone, anyone to speak.

M stood behind her desk with both hands firmly planted on the surface; she took a deep breath and began.

"Anyone care to tell me what is going on?"

Jack stood beside James with his hand covering his mouth in an attempt to suppress a giggle. He knew what was about to happen, but he also knew that James and Q had already taken the necessary precautions to protect M and her involvement in this entire fiasco.

"Ma'am" said Tanner as he apprehensively approached her desk "Let me say that whatever was done, was never meant to hurt or frighten you. It was done to protect you because we all love you"

She had to admit that if the poor man had not looked as though he was about to have a stroke on the spot, she might have found this amusing.

"It was not entirely his fault," said Eve as she nervously came to stand beside him

"If anyone is to blame, then I guess the blame would rest with me" chimed Mallory from the far corner of the room

"Not so fast Sir" said Captain Peters from the video screen "This was a series of miscommunications on a global scale"

"I see" was the only logical response she could think of as she slowly sat down "Well then, who would like to begin? Or as you all seem to have an active role, would you like to draw straws?" she asked

"I suppose this is really my fault for encouraging you to send an email to Agent Ward instead of just calling," said Eve quietly

"Yes...well, we shall deal with that particular issue later, but while we are on the subject, How, may I ask, did one innocent email set this fiasco in motion?" she asked as she looked around the room "Anyone?"

"Ma'am" started Tanner "As you know, one of my tasks is to monitor your emails, in particular, the junk mail, and when I saw that you had a message, which I stupidly assumed was from Agent Ward..."

"Oh come on kid, call me Jack. Lord knows you have been traipsing around my private life long enough for us to be on a first name basis," snorted Jack from the back of the room

M shot Jack one of her famous "Shut up or I'll end you" looks as she quickly turned her attention back to the very nervous Tanner

"As I was saying, I opened the response to the original message, not knowing the content of the original message, and it appeared to be a rather terse brush-off. I am aware that you are very fond of "Jack" and was appalled at the insensitivity of the message. That is when I went back and actually read the original message..."

"It's not his fault M, Bill was so upset by the response you received...mind you I had to literally drag it out of him...and once I did, rather than upset you we...well we..."

"Let e guess, you took it upon yourselves to answer the "offending" email on my behalf"

"In a manner of speaking...yes"

"That is where I come in," said Captain Peters "In retrospect, I can see where the original response could have been taken the wrong way, but in our defense, Jack was extremely busy at the time, and as Communication specialist on this mission I felt that a short response was better than silence."

"PETERS!" shouted Jack angrily

"When I got the second message, and it appeared that she had moved on and didn't really care about Jack, I was angry. I know how much she means to Jack, she is all he talks about. What else could I do but to respond back...?"

"Ah yes, and that is where I come in" relied Mallory

"Oh fantastic, another country heard from!" snapped M as her cheeks began to take on a slightly pink glow. "I suppose you are the ringmaster of this little circus"

"Not exactly, no I was more or less the head consultant. I stumbled across Mr. Tanner and Miss. Moneypenny brooding about the emails, and once the entire scenario had been explained, I and I alone felt that sending Agent Ward proof that you had in effect moved on would end the monotonous banter back and forth, so I enlisted the aid of Q to alter a few photos, to be sent as proof..."

"And when we got the proof, what could we do but retaliate with proof of our own" concluded Captain Peters.

"So let me get this straight" said M as she began to rub her temples "Mr. Tanner read my email, or rather, the response to my email and took offense, and instead of coming to me, he and Miss Moneypenny took it upon themselves to respond to defend my honor, thus provoking the same response from Agent Wards people who then replied in attempt to defend Jack's honor... am I getting this correct?"

"Yes" they all replied in unison

"Oh I need a drink," she said as she closed her eyes and shook her head

"M, we are so sorry for all of the confusion" said Eve sheepishly "But we were really, only trying to protect you"

"Thank you" she said as she stood "In light of the information presented to me, I can only conclude that, although well intended, this was clearly an abuse of official resources for personal use, and I am as guilty as the rest of you. In the future, any and ALL emails, not related to official business are to be sent and received on your personal computers on your own time, so that this NEVER happens again."

"Yes Ma'am"

"Oh and One final favor, Please swear to me that you will all stick to your day jobs, as you all seem to have failed miserably at playing cupid"

"Thank you Ma'am" they said as they all began to file out of her office

"Not so fast you two!" she said as she crossed the room and grabbed James and Jack by their arms and pulled them back as she pulled the door shut and leaned against it "We are not quite done yet, I believe there are a few more details that need discussing"

TO BE CONTINUED...


	9. Chapter 9 Chapter 9

**For Fairytales1981, saye0036 and detectivecaz (I hope I have them all spelled right) thank you so much for all of your kind reviews and support. You guys made this so much fun to write. Thanks again :)**

M leaned against the door with her arms folded across her chest and her best scowl etched across her face.

"I take it that this is one of those "Don't poke the bear with a stick" kinds of moments," said Jack with a nervous laugh

"You could say that" replied James as he slowly backed across the room and took a seat

Jack followed suit and slowly backed across the room with M following him until he bumped into a chair and promptly sat.

M made a point of keeping herself between the two men and the door to avoid ANY possibilities of one or both of them trying to escape as she carefully considered her next move.

"M" was all James could say before she put up her hand and stopped him, signaling that he should choose his words carefully. Jack, however, being an outsider, was not aware of the non-verbal cues that James and M had perfected and dove right in.

"Oli..."

"Finish that sentence and you will be singing soprano for the Vienna Boys Choir" she snapped as she came to stand between them

"It's best if you just let her rant and get it out of her system," said James under his breath

"That will be enough out of you!" replied M, glaring at James "Do you two have ANY idea how embarrassing this whole situation is...I mean...well...REALLY! and YOU!" she said turning her attention to James "IF you had an idea of what was going on, then WHY didn't you speak up sooner, and YOU" she said looking directly at Jack, "honestly... if you hadn't gone running around like the proverbial chicken with its head cut off"

"M let me explain" said James, the frustration building

"Yes Please do, and let's start with the actionable, International offence and work our way down, shall we?" she hissed

"What International offence?" he asked

"Drugging an American Federal agent...James what on earth were you thinking?"

"Ah...that, well I can't really take the blame for that" he replied with a grin as he cast a glance at Jack

"Yeah, about that. It really wasn't James' fault," said Jack with a chuckle

"Either of you care to elaborate?"

"Not especially" replied James, under his breath

"Well, DO IT anyway!"

"I've got this James," said Jack as he leaned forward in his chair "You can't blame James because I drugged myself"

"EXCUSE ME? You did not just say what I think you said"

"I needed to rule out James as a potential suspect, and the only way to do that was to see what he would do if he thought that we were both targets." Replied Jack as he looked at James apologetically "Sorry James, but at that point, everyone was a suspect"

"Apology accepted"

"Thank you"

"Alright you two, enough of the Emily Post social niceties" said M in a rather irritated tone "What about the photos? How is it that you had a flash drive containing the photos when you said that Tanner had just told you about them not five minutes before you told me?"

"Well, that was Q. He gave them to me before I left the lab and before he told Tanner about them. I needed to see your reactions to them in order to rule you both out as suspects, leaving only Tanner to do what he does best, which is panic." said James with a laugh "You should have seen him, he looked like a deer trapped in headlights...so to speak"

"And turning my flat upside down? Whose brilliant plan was that?"

"We needed Tanner to panic and contact the rest of the "accomplices" so that we knew just how far reaching this really was and how far they were willing to go to keep a secret," replied Jack

Anger, frustration, embarrassment and about a half a dozen other adjectives failed to accurately describe the range of emotions flashing across M's face as she thought about the explanations that she had been given.

"That will be all 007," she said angrily as she turned toward the window

James took his cue and hurried toward the door.

"Call me when the dust settles," he said over his shoulder as he closed the door

M continued to stare out the window as Jack rose to stand behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist, pulling her back to him.

"Tell me what you're thinking?" he whispered into her ear as she leaned against him

"To be honest, I don't know what to think," she said quietly as she turned slightly in his arms so that her head was resting against his chest.

"Try not to be too angry with them. They ALL love you and they proved as much by their actions today, in both defending you and admitting what they did, that has to count for something"

"Oh it's not that. It's just that I feel so damn foolish," she whispered as the tears of frustration that she had been holding off began to fall

"Why do you feel foolish? You are entitled to fall in love and have so sort of normal life outside the office," he said tilting her chin up so he look her in the eye

"But you and I both know that, given our jobs, that just isn't possible," she said as another tear slipped down her cheek

"It is if you trust me," he said as he release her and walked around to her desk and pushed the button underneath that effectively locked down her office

"What are you doing?"

"To put it bluntly, Making hay while the sun shines" he replied with a grin as he walked back across the room and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into a deep kiss

"Jack..." she said breathlessly as she pulled back and looked at him "Is your memory really that short? Did we or did we not just have a discussion with my entire staff about appropriate behavior in the workplace?"

"Well, not in so many words. I believe that the discussion in question dealt with the use of official resources for personal use," he said with a smirk

"I believe that my office could be considered an official resource..."

"Then why does it come equipped with a sofa and a bar?"

"I can't...I mean we can't..." she stammered to come up with a logical response, however, that was easier said than done as Jack had begun nuzzling her neck, and playing with the buttons of her blouse, while guiding her backwards toward the sofa, causing her to lose her train of thought rapidly.

"We can do this," he said as he sat her down and gently pushed her back against the sofa cushions "If we both work at it"

"Well you pretty much need my cooperation or you won't get very far" she replied with a grin as she pulled him to her

"Hold on...what exactly are we talking about?" he asked pulling back with a puzzled look

"I know what I was talking about, what were you talking about?"

"I was talking about our relationship"

"Oh" she said as she unbuttoned his shirt and attempted to slide it off his shoulders

"I thought we decided that sofa's were really not designed to accommodate this particular activity' he said as he pressed against her, leaving little doubt where this encounter was headed

"Well it's either this or the floor, and to be honest, this may be plush carpet, but it's not that plush, and there is the distinct possibility that we may not be able to get back up," she said with a mischievous grin

"We could always go home?" he suggested as he rested his forehead against hers

"Leave it to you to be Polly Practical all of a sudden" she replied

"I'm just saying..."

"Oh for Christ's sake Jack. We have had every conceivable entity known to man conspire against us from the beginning. The only reason we were actually able to make love at all was because we were in hiding at the time, and fear is an excellent form of motivation..."

"I don't need fear as a motivation," he said as he leaned down and kissed her before he sat up and pulled on his shirt "All I need is you"

With that he stood up and offered her his hand

"So we are going home," she said, almost pouting, as she took his hand and stood up

"We don't have to...We still have the room at the hotel for another night"

"Jack, if I disappear again..."

"Darlin, given today's events, even the Great James Bond himself won't come looking for you tonight, but if it will make you feel better, this time we will leave a note and hang an enormous DO NOT DISTURB sign on the door" he said with a wink as he pulled her close and wrapped his arms around her again.

"I love you Jack," she said as she buried her face in his shoulder

"It's a good thing. I wouldn't go thru all of this for just anybody, and for the record, I love you too" he replied as he kissed her forehead and unlocked the office doors

"And what have we learned from this little...adventure?" he asked teasingly

"We have learned that the next time I want to see you, I will just send a smoke signal," she giggled

"Really? Aren't you afraid that your team will think that London is burning to the ground?"

"Well, it's either that or show up on our doorstep with a bow top of my head" she replied with a laugh

"Oh I choose option two...definitely option two"

~fin~


End file.
